This is a relatively new live streaming cam of a Red Tailed Hawk pair located in San Diego County, California. The cam is HD and has sound. The parents are currently sitting on two eggs. Being a new cam there is not much information available re this specific pair; however, below you will find considerable information about the Red-tailed Hawk in general.

Feb 28, 2015 12:30 PM Parent incubating

Highlights of the 2015 season

Eggs Laid: 2 eggs have been laid

Eggs Hatched: #1 hatched the night of or early morning of March 19th/20th; #2 hatched March 21st, approx 7:30 am.

The RTH lives approximately 12 years in the wild but has been known to survive to 28 years in a zoo. The Female on average is 20-26 inches, weighing in at about 2 to 3 pounds while the male being somewhat smaller at 18-22 inches weighs about 1.5 to 2.9 pounds. They have a wingspan ranging from 41 to 53 inches.

The age of maturity is reached in 1-2 years and they pair up for life. However, like the Bald eagle, they will take another partner if something happens to its mate.

The nest is usually located in a tall tree or where trees are not available on a cliff ledge or even a tall human constructions such as power poles and buildings. The nest can be up to 3 feet across. The female can lay anywhere from one to five (usually more than one but less than 5) grayish-white, speckled eggs at two-day intervals. Both parents incubate the eggs. Incubation time is 28- 35 days. Chicks are a much lighter in color and do not have a red tail. Their feathers change color gradually over several molts. Half of all red-tails do not make it through their first year of life

The chicks grow and fledge quickly, in about 42 – 48 days but usually remain with the parents practicing flying and hunting skills for 30 - 70 days. As young hawks, they tend to hover high above the ground and grab at mice, large insects, reptiles, and whatever they can snag, whereas adults soar and may swoop down to grab birds or even bats in flight. The bulk of the red-tailed hawk’s diet consists of rodents, ground squirrels and mice. It can also include other birds, reptiles, insects and fish..

Red-tailed hawks are birds of prey, with keen eyesight, powerful talons and a sharp beak. Feather color and pattern are varied depending on where they are found but all have the copper colored tail that gives them their common name. Red-tails living in San Diego County have a cocoa-colored back and buff underside with brown and black stripes.

Red-tailed Hawks exist in a variety of habitats, including scrub, desert, plains, grasslands, agricultural field, pastures, parks, woodlands and tropical rain forest, favoring open areas with elevated perches. Their territory can be up to 9.6 square miles and they generally keep to the same territory for life defending it together. Northern birds from Alaska and Canada migrate as far south as the Panama for the winter returning home in the warmer weather.

The RTH’s main predators are great horned owls and crows which prey on their eggs and nestlings. Both the RTH and their predators are known to kill the young and destroy the eggs of the other in an attempt to take over the other's nest site.

Thanks for the reminder that it's getting near time for a hatch, gemini!

It's a lovely camera - but unfortunately it's too big to have open for more than a minute or two - just takes up too much room on my monitor (and sadly a second monitor really isn't an option ).

I don't know much about hawks - but the adult seems very peaceful and relaxed as she (or he?) incubates, so perhaps the hatching process hasn't started yet. Or maybe I just haven't been looking long enough to see her check to see what's happening.